Born in Tadwale village in Maharashtra's Solapur district, IPS officer Sharan Gopinath Kamble grew up in a family with limited resources. His parents, Gopinath Kamble and his mother, worked as daily-wage labourers and sold vegetables. Though they had little formal education, they were determined to give their son every opportunity to study.
Kamble attended a government school in his village. For Classes 11 and 12, he used to travel nearly 12 kilometres every day to attend school. His family home did not have electricity until he reached Class 11, so he often studied at night under a kerosene lantern.
His academic journey later took him to Walchand College of Engineering, Sangli, where he pursued BTech after clearing the Maharashtra CET. He then completed an MTech in Electronic Systems Engineering from IISc Bengaluru. Despite receiving a private-sector job offer worth around Rs 20 lakh annually, Kamble chose public service over a lucrative career.
He moved to Delhi to prepare for the UPSC examinations, supported partly by a Maharashtra government scholarship of Rs 12,000 per month for eight months.
His hard work produced multiple successes. In 2019, he secured All India Rank 8 in the UPSC CAPF (AC) examination. He cleared the UPSC Civil Services Examination 2020 with AIR 542 and joined the Indian Police Service. He also secured Rank 127 in the Indian Forest Service but continued his career in the IPS.
As a 2021-batch IPS officer of the Rajasthan cadre, Kamble later served as ACP, Sanchore, in Jalore district, a border area adjoining Gujarat. His work against drug trafficking and narcotics abuse earned him the DGP Disc on Republic Day. His efforts included action against organised drug networks as well as awareness campaigns against practices such as offering opium and poppy pods at weddings and local functions.
From studying under a lantern to serving as an IPS officer, Kamble's journey highlights the role of education, determination and his family's unwavering support.
